A 2011 report from the Mineta Transportation Institute on how rising transportation costs affect low-income families has been added to the Resource Center best practices database. This research uses in-depth interviews with 73 adults to determine travel behavior and transportation spending patterns; the costs and benefits of alternative modes of travel; cost management strategies; and opinions about the ef­fects of changing transportation prices on travel behavior.

Among the report findings:

Most low-income households are concerned about their transportation costs.

Low-income individuals actively and strategically manage their household resources in order to survive on very limited means and to respond to changes in income or transportation costs.

In making mode-choice decisions, low-income travelers, like higher-income travelers, carefully evaluate the costs of travel (time and out-of-pocket expenses) against the benefits of alternative modes available to them.

Some low-income individuals in our sample were willing to accept higher transportation expenditures—such as the costs of auto ownership or congestion tolls—if they believed that they currently benefit or would potentially benefit from the increased expenses.

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Transportation for America

America's transportation system is half a century behind--causing unnecessary pollution, expense, and congestion. We need our leaders to invest in public transportation, high-speed passenger rail, streets safe for biking and walking, maintaining our roads and transit systems, and green innovation.